The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) has launched a ‘skills toolkit’ that aims to help food and drink manufacturers recruit jobseekers of all ages across the UK.

According to the FDF, the toolkit will help manufacturers understand and identify the job finding and training schemes best suited to help them build and upskill their workforce. Information on how companies can access the £1,000 grant for every employee taken on through the scheme will also be made available.

The FDF estimated that there are around 500,000 vacancies in the farm to fork supply chain.

‘Accessing new talent’

Alex Burghart MP, Minister for Skills, said: “It’s fantastic to see the Food and Drink Federation supporting its members to provide skills training, empowering food and drink manufacturers to access new talent and upskill local economies.

“From apprenticeships and traineeships to T-Levels, skills boot camps and our free courses for jobs, our training offers are supporting people of all ages to gain the skills they need to secure great careers.”

Caroline Keohane, head of industry growth at FDF, said that the federation will continue to work with its members to create a highly skilled workforce which is fit for the industry of the future.